Month: October 2008

Have you ever owned a scented stamp? Or how about a tasty one? Gaining in popularity worldwide are scented stamps. Many of these novelty stamps have been issued since 1999, but back in 1973 the innovative nation of Bhutan got the ball rolling. Below is a listing of the top 10 scented stamps that this philatelist is aware of.

Canada Post has commemorated this year’s summit of «La Francophonie» being held in Quebec City with a special stamp issued on October 15th. It is richly coloured and features a picture of Quebec City with the name of each of the participating members of the summit listed across the top. With the issuing of this stamp we are reminded of Canada’s role in founding the society in 1970.

Some stamps of the world are not taken seriously by some collectors, but they can still be fascinating due to their design and composition. Examples of this are the fascinating stamps of the small nation of Bhutan. Bhutan is a land-locked nation in the Himalayas. Its citizens call it «land of thunder dragon», and visitors have referred to it as the «last Shangri-La», a testament to its natural beauty. Due to its isolation, it is a country that has struggled to develop and improve its quality of life, and stamps have played a large role in this.

Have you ever heard of «National Stamp Collecting Month»? Starting in 1981, October has been the month set aside to celebrate and introduce people to one of he most popular hobbies on our planet-stamp collecting! In fact, in order to attract as many people as possible, especially youngsters, special stamps are often issued for the event (most often pictorials). Past issues around the world have commemorated space, and other themes. We still have to wait and see what, if any, special issues will come out for 2008.